Field of the Invention
This specification relates to a waterproof structure in a connector, such as a vehicle-side connector applied for charging.
Related Art
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2011-24903 discloses a vehicle-side connector to be connected to a charging connector during charging. This connector includes a terminal fitting having a wire connecting portion connected to an end of a wire, a housing provided with a terminal accommodation chamber into which the terminal fitting is to be inserted from behind, and a retainer to retain the terminal fitting by being mounted to cover a rear opening of the housing.
The vehicle-side connector of this type requires waterproofing measures to be taken for a part of the housing where the retainer is mounted. A relatively simple waterproof structure provides a fitting tube on the front surface of the retainer. The fitting tube can fit into the rear opening of the housing with a clearance. A seal ring is mounted on the outer peripheral surface of the fitting tube and is compressed resiliently between the outer peripheral surface of the fitting tube and the inner peripheral surface of the rear opening.
The waterproof structure described above requires the seal ring to be transported to a connector assembling site or the like while being fit on the fitting tube of the retainer in advance. The seal ring is held only by frictional engagement and may be displaced due to vibration during transportation or the like. If the retainer is mounted into the housing with a positional deviation of the seal ring overlooked, appropriate sealing performance cannot be expected in some cases. Particularly, a small positional deviation is difficult to confirm visually. Thus, there has been a problem that an inspection process for inspecting the presence or absence of leakage has to be performed after the mounting of the retainer.
The invention was completed on the basis of the above situation and aims to enable a seal ring to be held firmly at a proper position and to enable easy visual discrimination as to whether or not a holding state is appropriate.